Party of personal irresponsibility

Published April 23, 2020

By Thomas Mills

ReOpenNC had their second protest in Raleigh yesterday. It turned out to be little more than GOP political rally full of politicians and speeches. Trump paraphernalia and MAGA gear were on proud display. A large contingent of folks wore “Run, Forest, Run” t-shirts to show their support for Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest. Republican Congressman Dan Bishop walked through crowd handing out pocket editions of the constitution. 

Social distancing rules were out the window. Republican lieutenant governor candidate Mark Robinson moved through the crowd shaking hands and hugging people, registering his disdain for the warnings about the virus. One protester said, “They don’t need to shut down the economy and use scare tactics. Just use common sense.” Of course, common sense would have kept her out of a crowd of people in the midst of a global pandemic. 

Apparently, protesters believe that the virus isn’t as deadly or contagious as medical experts say. They believe politicians are lying to them for vague and nefarious reasons. They are also probably the people who believe Fox News and Donald Trump, not people who study the diseases. One sign read “We are not N.Y.” as if people in North Carolina have stronger immune systems. They believe the limited number of cases is due to overblown concerns, not a result of the measures we’ve taken. 

 Counter protesters lined the street dressed in scrubs and masks. These are the health care workers risking their lives to treat people with the deadly disease. The pro-CIVID protesters screamed at them, calling them liars. One woman held a sign that read “Scam-demic.” 

According to polls, these protesters are still in the minority. About 60% of the people worry that we will open up society too soon while only 32% think we will wait too long. Those numbers will inevitably change but for now the protesters are out of sync with the majority of the country. Experts say lifting the restrictions across the country now could result in hundreds of thousands of deaths. 

Republican politicians have either pandered to the pro-COVID groups or remained silent. The Republican lieutenant governor of Texas tells us, “There are more important things than living.” The party of personal responsibility is proving that it has none. Educated Republicans know that the virus is deadly and they know that lifting restrictions right now will result in an increase in new cases and more deaths. They have become the party of cowards, unwilling to speak truth to power or rebutting the disinformation being spewed from Fox News.